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Battlefield V Boss Says Female Characters Are 'Here To Stay'

In the wake of some players being upset about the inclusion of women in the marketing materials for the upcoming Battlefield V, GM at DICE, Oskar Gabrielson has stated that, "Player choice and female playable characters are here to stay."

Battlefield V was announced earlier this week and included women in the promotional materials. From the art to the trailer, women played a big role in the marketing for this game. Considering those that identify as women make up nearly half of the world, this should not have come as a surprise to players. To many, seeing this change in promotional materials from previous Battlefield games was a breath of fresh air.

However, to other players the inclusion of women in the game was a point of issue and caused a firestorm of hate directed towards DICE on the day of the release of the materials.

In a response to the anger around this choice, Gabrielson made a series of statements, including the one noted above.

It's been two days since the reveal of Battlefield V so I wanted to share some thoughts on the reactions so far. It sure seems we created a lot of excitement, and also some questions on a lot of different topics.

He continued to say, "We want Battlefield V to represent all those who were a part of the greatest drama in human history, and give players choice to choose and customize the characters they play with," following that up with, "Our commitment as a studio is to do everything we can to create games that are inclusive and diverse. We always set out to push boundaries and deliver unexpected experiences. But above all, our games must be fun!"

Many are angry at the "historical accuracy" of women in this role in the Battlefield franchise, but Gabrielson had a response to that as well when he said, "The Battlefield sandbox has always been about playing the way you want. Like attempting to fit three players on a galloping horse, with flamethrowers. With BFV you also get the chance to play as who you want. This is #everyonesbattlefield."

Gabrielson shut down the rabid reaction in a clear and concise way, which was what was needed in a situation like this one. Undisputed, games are for everyone and should be as inclusive and diverse as our current world is. Fundamentally, they're never going to be perfectly historically accurate, which is the intent that DICE was trying to drive home and Gabrielson did successfully.